1. Technical Field
This invention relates to fire extinguisher equipment and, more particularly, to an indoor fire hydrant for providing users with an easy and accessible means of fighting the spread of a fire in and around the house.
2. Prior Art
During the last several years, the fire seasons have been particularly bad, affecting an average of more than four million acres of land in 2005, 2006, and 2007 (or more land than the states of Connecticut and Rhode Island combined.) The fires destroyed many newer homes and communities built on the edges of the forest, and the worst may be yet to come in future years. There is growing concern in the insurance industry because of a recent trend towards increased losses from wildfires and floods. Increased exposure reflects population growth, forcing new development adjacent to wild lands and flood prone areas. These factors, coupled with changes in weather patterns and rainfall, have heightened loss potential. The insured loss for the year 2008 fires in California alone was $2 billion. More than seven million homes in California are in areas categorized in the three highest fire-risk levels. Insurers are also exposed to increasing flood losses for commercial and industrial properties.
Only a few years ago, several large wildfires in southern California dominated media headlines as they encroached on the suburbs surrounding both San Diego and Los Angeles. In total, about 500,000 acres of land (about the size of Rhode Island) were burned. In addition, a total of 3,581 homes, a countless number of vehicles and a number of commercial buildings were destroyed, disrupting hundreds of thousands of people's lives. Given this level of destruction, it is apparent that a real need exists for some type of device or apparatus which could be used to safeguard homes and other structures from the risks of being damaged or destroyed by brush fires or forest fires other than the conventional fire extinguishers which are lacking in capacity to fight prolonged fires.
Accordingly, a need remains for a device in order to overcome the above-noted shortcomings. The present invention satisfies such a need by providing an indoor fire hydrant that is convenient and easy to use, is durable yet lightweight in design, is versatile in its applications, and provides a user with an easy and accessible means of fighting the spread of a fire in and around the house.